I’ve been using Tinderbox for many years. To newcomers, keep at it. The program is useful even if employed at the most basic level. The more time you put in, the more powerful it gets. I’ve been at it for years and still feel like a beginner. But the community is enthusiastic and very helpful, willing and able to bring newcomers along the learning curve. There were times early on I considered giving up on Tinderbox, but for some reason I kept at it. I’m glad I didn.
When I started using Tinderbox a couple years ago, I was using it in ways I considered “basic” (and still finding a lot of value—essentially very robust mind maps). I never thought I’d understand the more advanced capabilities, nor have the programmatic understanding to employ them. But over time, sure enough, I’ve added more advanced functions to my maps and am finding my new skills empowering and helpful. I find I “think in Tinderbox” in two ways: 1) I do thinking work using Tinderbox, and 2) I consider the capabilities of Tinderbox when I’m thinking about how to solve problems.
Amen. The size of my projects means outlines are the practical workspace but I think in Tinderbox spatial map/hypertext terms with problems even when not using the app. So I use the app even when I don’t!